With the NFL season starting to wind down, trap games are inevitable. Struggling teams fighting for a playoff spot, while other teams who are out of it look to spoil the fun. The New York Giants were entering into a trap game themselves going up against the winless Cleveland Browns. Now they may not have crushed the Browns the way we would’ve wanted them too, they managed to win their sixth in a row with a 27-13 victory. While they may not have dominated, they did just enough to win the game. Let’s recap.

Running Game: C+

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Sunday may have confirmed who would be the 1-2 punch for the GIants when it comes to the running attack in Rashad Jennings & Paul Perkins. Now having said that, the running game once again struggled to get any kind of rhythm going at all. Jennings got most of the workload rushing for 55 yards on 15 carries while Perkins rushed for 29 yards on just 9 carries. That was the bad news. The good news is that help may be on the way. Shane Vereen could return on Dec 11th against Dallas which should boost the running game.

Passing Game: B

Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports

Eli Manning surely displayed his strengths and weakness on Sunday. On one hand, he didn’t throw an interception which has plagued him all year. He threw for 3 TDs converting on 15 of his 27 attempts for 197 yards. However, his accuracy was a problem failing to connect to Odell Beckham Jr. on multiple occasions that could’ve easily put the Browns away. Despite this, Odell Beckham Jr. had another monster game with 6 catches for 96 receiving yards and 2 scores. Even though Cruz had 1 catch, Shepard was not even targeted at all which is a head scratcher as to why.

Run Defense: A

It is becoming perfectly clear that the run defense has been stout. The $200 million dollar price tag was worth the spending as the G-men continued to dominate the Browns offense starting with the running game. Only allowing 58 yards on the ground, it is the 11th straight game in which the Defense has not allowed a 100-yd rusher. While they dominated against the run, against the pass they proved to be just as good.

Pass Defense: B

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I’m separating this because it was a tale of two different positions. The front four for the G-men are proving to be the best in football. With 7 sacks in total, the front four are an intimidating force. Jason Pierre-Paul is continuing to show signs of being one of the best DE's in the game. His stat sheet was stuffed with 3 sacks, 5 solo tackles, 1 FF, and 1 FR that he ran back for a touchdown. In his last two weeks: 12 tackles, 5.5 TFL (tackles for loss), 6 QB Hits, 5.5 sacks, 2 FF and 1 INT/TD.

While the D-Line dominated, the coverage was a different story. Allowing 332 passing yards through the air was a major problem. They even allowed 131 of those passing yards to Terrelle Pryor. The coverage team regressed this week and against the Browns we give them a pass. But they must step it up and take it to another level against the Steelers if they are going to have any chance of winning.

Special Teams: C

Robbie Gould for the 3rd time missed an extra point try. His kicking mate Brad Wing on the other hand had a quality performance punting the ball 9 times and pinning the Browns inside the 20 on 5 of those occasions. A muffed punt from Bobby Rainey that led to turnover led to Odell Beckham Jr getting some work. While he did take a punt back for a touchdown, it was taken back because of a penalty. The special teams for the Giants has continued to struggle and yesterday was no different.

Now is where it gets interesting. As the Giants sit at 8-3, their schedule is going to get tougher. Their next opponent will be against the 6-5 Pittsburgh Steelers on the road. The next 5 games will be a brutal stretch. And if the Giants want to prove to us they should be in the conversation among the best in football, they have to play near perfect football in these next games to show us this team is forreal.

The winning keeps on ticking and once again the Giants’ defense steps up and saves the day as they held onto a 22-16 win at home against the Chicago Bears. With their 5th win in a row, Big Blue has looked much better and has been a force to be reckoned with in the NFC. Sure the games are never pretty, but a win's a win no matter how ugly it is. Here’s a recap of how it all went down.

Running Game: B-

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Seems as though Rashad Jennings has been taking some notes and picked up where he left off last week. Both Jennings and Perkins combined to rush for over 100-yds for the second straight game. Jennings continues to look better exploiting holes and finding those running lanes. Credit the O-line as well for opening up the running lanes for Jennings to take advantage. With 21 carries for 85 yards, the running game is improving each week instead of it being the achilles heal.

Passing Game: B+

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Eli is again showing his efficient play by continuing his effectiveness. With 2 TDs on the game, Eli continued his hot play with his elusiveness and buying enough time to extend the plays avoiding any sacks. With the three headed monster not at its best, Cruz, Beckham, and Shepard each still played a role in the win with Shepard catching a touchdown pass in the 2nd quarter. Eli didn’t dominate the game, but he did more than enough to keep this team in it while the defense did the rest.

Run Defense: B

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Another game, another stellar performance from the Giants D as they once again didn’t allow the Bears to gain 100 yds rushing. Comparing last year to this year’s run defense, they went from 24th a year ago to 7th this year. That is no fluke. This defense has paid off big time and with the additions the Giants made in the offseason, don’t be surprised if this D can carry them into the playoffs and onto the Super Bowl.

Pass Defense: A-

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Sure it was against a lifeless Bears team that has nothing to play for other than pride and a little bit of respect, but this front 4 should be given each a game ball. With a season high 4 sacks, Vernon, Harrison, Hankins, and Pierre-Paul all contributed big time in pressuring the quarterback. Landon Collins once again is showing signs of becoming one of the best safeties in the league with 6 tackles and sealing the outcome of the game with his 5th interception in 4 games. There’s no doubt who has been the focal point to this hot streak and it has been this unit on defense.

It has become evident that the Giants have been one of the hottest teams in the NFL. Even though it was against the Chicago Bears, as long as you beat the teams that is on your schedule it always helps. Their next opponent is against the winless 0-11 Cleveland Browns. To say it should be an easy win is an understatement, but knowing this Giants team likes to keep their games close they oughta take advantage of this for them to go 8-3. Could you call them a Super Bowl contender? Who knows, anything is possible in the NFL.

The New York Giants once again has given fans a reason to believe and have hope for this year’s squad. Despite another close game, the Giants were able to tame the Cincinnati Bengals with a 21-20 victory. While it wasn’t a pretty game by any means (which none of them have been) what counts is their record up till now which is 6-3. Not only is it the 4th straight win for big blue, but it moves them two games behind of the Cowboys in the division. Let’s recap and see how well they fared.

Giants Running: B-

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Well this is a welcoming sight, a positive grade for the Giants running backs. A major improvement over what we have seen over the last couple of weeks. Rashad Jennings seemed to have gotten the message that Paul Perkins would be making a case for the starting nod. Even though Jennings didn’t have a 100-yd performance, his 15 attempts for 87 yards proved to be enough for the win. Paul Perkins wasn’t much help as he rushed 9 times for 31 yards. The running attack is still lacking, but rushing for a season high helped in the win. Hope this effort continues.

Giants Passing: B

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Eli has not had much help this season. The offensive line has struggled and with the exception of Odell Beckham Jr. the pass catchers haven’t been reliable either. That problem persisted on Monday night where the Bengals D were all over Manning’s face. What made it just as bad was that the Giants’ receivers dropped 4 catchable balls. Manning was also being overtly aggressive with two costly interceptions. But at the end of the day, Eli gonna be Eli. He had another solid outing with 240 passing yards as he converted 28 of his 44 pass attempts with 3 touchdowns. It wasn’t his top showing, but the receiving core didn't help Eli's cause.

Giants D-Line: A

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It needs to be mentioned if it hasn’t already, the Giants’ defensive line has fully lived up to the hype. Now the numbers in the sack column is an issue (dead last in the NFL with 11) in the words of Ben McAdoo "stats are for losers." The foursome's impact goes beyond the sheet of paper. Both Oliver Vernon and Jason Pierre-Paul are two of the most well-rounded defensive ends in the NFL. Vernon’s 10 tackles including his 4th quarter sack has been a menace. JPP has been a menace himself collecting 5 tackles, two QB rushes and a pass defended. It’s hard to argue that this front 4 has been the heart and soul of this team. They’re the key reason why this team is 6-3.

Giants Defensive Backs: A-

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Landon Collins continues to play at an All-Pro level as he collected his 4th interception in 3 games along with his 5 solo tackles. He is proving to be the Giants’ “safety” net no pun intended. Janoris Jenkins continued his great play allowing A.J. Green catching just 4 passes for 23 yards (and a touchdown). While another Eli in Eli Apple rebounded giving up 45 yards on three catches.

At 6-3, the Giants’ are sitting comfortably in the playoff picture. With a win on Monday Night, the next two games are against the 2-7 Chicago Bears and the winless Cleveland Browns. From here on out, there should be no reason why the Giants’ can’t go 8-3 with the way they’re playing. The division even though may seem out of reach with how Dallas looks, Big Blue is slowly creeping into the Cowboys' rear view mirror.